Lake Life

by Tanya Boteju

 Perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli, this charming, chaotic romance follows two teens who agree to fake-date when stuck together one summer in a quirky, scenic lake town.

This is definitely not how Maya wanted to spend the summer—depressed at her once-beloved cabin in Spruce Lake, and unable to avoid seeing her lifelong best friend, Rashida, after confessing her woefully unrequited love to her last year. Maya can’t decide if she wants to escape, or convince Rashida they’re still meant to be.

Gabe is sent to Spruce Lake by her mom in hopes she stays out of trouble. Gabe is NOT excited to be here. She does NOT like nature. She does NOT want to spend her summer in a tiny town with outdoorsy environmentalist types.

Gabe is pretty sure she’ll be spending this entire summer bored and alone…until she meets Maya. Together, they hatch a fake-dating scheme to make Rashida jealous and convince Gabe’s mom that Gabe has turned a wholesome new leaf.  

But as the plan plays out, and Gabe and Maya contend with protests, a relentlessly concerned community, and romantic twists, they start to realize that their assumptions about friendship and love might have led them completely astray. Can they find their way through this mess without hurting each other in the process?

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, LGBT, Young Adult Romance, Lesbian, Lesbian Fiction

Kindle Edition

Expected publication May 26, 2026

About the author

TANYA BOTEJU lives on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations (Vancouver, BC). Part-time, she teaches English to clever and sassy young people. The rest of her time, she uses writing as an excuse to eat pastries. Her debut novel, KINGS, QUEENS, AND IN-BETWEENS, was named a Top Ten Indie Next Pick by the American Booksellers Association, as well as selected for the American Librarian Association 2020 Rainbow List. Her second novel, BRUISED, was selected as a Gold Standard book by the Junior Library Guild. Look for another YA novel, MESSY PERFECT, and a middle grade nonfiction book about allyship in 2025. In both her teaching and writing, Tanya hopes she’s bending the universe even the tiniest bit toward justice. Visit her at tanyaboteju.com.

Reviews

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for this ARC.

This one got me with the cover. Knowing it was a diverse read with BIPOC and queer characters, I was sold.

This no-spice YA romance has a lot going for it. Fake dating is one of my favorite tropes and I was excited to jump in.

It took me a little bit to warm up to the two main characters. At first I attributed it to them being teens, so in that way I may not be the target audience, but as the mother of a young teen I was sure I’d be able to make it through. My issue mostly came from their demeanor and actual speech though.

I usually love short chapters but these were sometimes especially short. Frequently we would get lots of telly inner monologue, tons of backstory, and minimal to moderate dialogue. This book would have benefited from really letting the reader be immersed in the action of the story. Instead of telling us the drama of the previous summer, a prologue with this playing out as an example. Or, instead of recapping of the evenings or activism meetings, let us experience the planning process as the event was portrayed to be central to the story. I wanted to be emotionally invested but I never quite got there because of the telling nature of some of the key moments.

My biggest hiccup was with the connection between the love interests. We go from fake dating, to enjoying friendly company, to intense pining that seemed to come from nowhere. I did appreciate the resolution given their age.

Knowing this is an ARC, I hope SO MUCH that this book gets deeper into the action and emotion prior to publication, because it deserves it. The potential here is amazing.

[Erica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ebook in exchange for an honest review.

4/5 stars

This book has a lot of things going for it. First off, that gorgeous cover! The art is beautiful and really does a good job of capturing the vibes of the book. Fake dating may be one of my favorite romance tropes, so I knew I would like this. The story itself is not groundbreaking, but it doesn’t need to be. It’s a sweet summer romance with an undercurrent of found family and environmental activism- not new ground to cover, but Lake Life does it very well.

I had a bit of a slow start to it, to be honest. I wasn’t totally in love with the characters until I got past the first 50 pages or so. It’s not that I disliked it, I just wasn’t initially drawn to Maya and Gabe. However, the story/writing finds its footing after a slow initial start. As we got to know them better, I found myself liking the story more and more and was utterly charmed by the ending. Gabe and Maya are a sweet couple, and I loved how the author does not try to prove that these girls who have known each other for a few weeks at this point, are going to get married and live happily ever after. The relationship they have is healthy for them and is a point of growth- that’s what matters more than the endgame-ness of the couple.

[Jesaka Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tanya Boteju is a must-read author for me and she gets better with every book she writes. LAKE LIFE is excellent. The world of Spruce Lake is richly drawn, with vivid physical descriptions and deeply developed characters. I initially hesitated to read this novel because of the fake dating plot; however, Boteju manages to deliver the story with an original approach through main characters Maya and Gabe. Both of the teen characters have their own growth arcs away from each other and together, which gives the novel a lot of depth. The relationship between Maya and her best friend Rashida (and "real" love interest at the start of the book) is so well developed that it's hard to read at times--it feels so believable and drawn from life. It's impossible to not feel for Maya and her confusion. Gabe has a well-written arc rooted in her feelings and experiences (including abandonment) by her two moms. This storyline includes imperfect queer characters (yes!!) and a teen finding her own agency and using it. I especially love how the character mostly likely to be described as "the town curmudgeon" connects with Gabe and develops a strong mentor-mentee relationship. Overall, I loved this book.

[Michael Russell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lake Life by Tanya Boteju is a realistic novel where fake dating meets environmental protests. Maya is back at Spruce Lake for the summer, but she is still reeling from the crushing humiliation she suffered at the end of the previous summer. Maya very publicly confessed her love to Rashida, her lifelong best friend – who most definitely did NOT share the same romantic feelings. And EVERYONE knows about Maya’s spectacular rejection. The novel is also narrated by Gabe, whose mother sent her to spruce lake with instructions to stay out of trouble. Stop partying. Enjoy nature. As if. Gabe meets Maya, and the two concoct a plan to fake-date in the hope that Rashida will get jealous and fall in love with Maya. Fake-dating Maya also helps Gabe look like she’s turned a new leaf by dating the down-to-earth environmentalist Maya. Gabe gets involved in Maya’s family protests over a developer that is trying to destroy a big section of the lake to build a resort, but then things go spectacularly wrong with both Gabe’s mom and her growing attraction to Maya. Like the best rom-coms, this book is a delightful read and as an added bonus, Lake Life both references and relies on two classic books: Braiding Sweetgrass and Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe. This is a fantastic read during the summer, or any time of the year! Recommended for all high school libraries and young adult sections at all public libraries.